Tints of Gold
by mystic2182
Summary: Nathan and Haley recall when they fell asleep in the park as mentioned by Nathan in The Wind That Blew My Heart Away


The sun shone through the littering of leaves, the patches of greens, yellows, and gold overlapping in geometric patterns. The spring air was crisp with the lingering bite of winter, yet the trees twinkled brightly against the afternoon light.

She looked up from where she lied, her eyes following the trim edges of the leaves, the way they hung effortlessly from the branches, swaying lightly against the breeze. She could see hints of the blue sky between the leaves, the perfectly clean blue that added a deep background to the shades of green and yellow.

Breathing in deeply, she felt the calm wash over her, the peace and tranquility she got from being here, in this spot, and she relished in the way it made her feel. Stretching her body, she pulled, feeling the muscles in her legs and arms tighten and flex. It was beautiful to be here, be here with him again, after so many months.

Turning to look at him here beside her, his hair dark against the light of the blanket, his eyes closed serenely. A soft smile laid across his lips, the edges of his mouth turned up in a peaceful smile, and she found her eyes trailing across the strong features of his face. The smooth expanse of his forehead, the way his worry and anxiety wove lines through the skin. His eyebrows, dark, distinct, and expressive, the way his whole face could change with just the simple raising of one. Beneath, the cerulean blue of his eyes, the dark flecks of gold that circled the iris, the way they darkened to an almost midnight blue right before he kissed her. His nose, classic and dignified; all the makings of a romantic Roman sculpture. His lips. God, his lips. Full and soft, demanding and beckoning, powerful and sensitive, the very pressure of them against hers sending her into a tailspin, her every breath lost.

She could feel them now, even as he lay still beside her, his lips wet and warm against hers. She had memorized the feel, memorized the texture of them against her own, the way they pulled at her, wrapped her into a frenzy with one slick movement, and she longed to feel them now, the need deepening inside her.

His smile grew, the corners lifting even more and he spoke, low and raspy against her ear, even as his eyes stayed shut. "I know I'm good looking, but you're giving me a complex from all the staring."

Haley giggled, her body snuggling deeper into the crook of his shoulder. "How did you know?"

His eyes fluttered open then, the blue dark and deep. "I thought we went over this. I know you."

Haley's nose nuzzled the soft cotton of his shirt, loving the smell of his cologne that clung to the material. "I know you do."

"What were you thinking about?" He grinned at her, his hands curling her hair around her ear, his body long and lean against the side of her.

"You." She smiled simply.

Nathan winked, his hands running along her back. "Well I am pretty perfect."

"Oh I know all that, but I was thinking about how handsome you are." She giggled against his ear, blowing softly at his hair.

"Shut up." Nathan groaned, his eyes rolling playfully.

Haley shot up then, her eyes wide with glee. "What happened to the cocky guy I married? The guy who ripped off his warm ups at the auction for all those screaming girls? What happened to him?" Haley laughed, tickling at his sides.

Nathan laughed as her hands wandered up and down his sides. "He's still here. He just doesn't need all of that anymore." He smiled softly, his eyes tracing along the lines of her lips, the soft pink inviting. She licked them then, her tongue darting out to apply a silky sheen and he felt his heart constrict.

"Look at you, you old sweet talker." She snuggled down into his chest once again, her nose nuzzling him happily.

"Yeah I know. I'm pretty great. I mean, I'm the one who reminded you how great it is here." He looked up at the tree above them, his eyes reflecting the gold in the leaves.

Haley smiled, her eyes following his to trace along the jagged edges above them, the leaves creating a halo. "I never forgot. You just brought it to memory. Besides…" she halted, her eyes turning towards his again, already finding his on hers, "I was the one who brought us here the first time."

"_I told you not to procrastinate until Sunday. Now we can't do anything fun because you need to study." Haley pouted, her bottom lip jutting out playfully from where she sat on the edge of the couch, her face upturned towards his._

_Nathan walked around the kitchen counter, his fingers trailing the edge of the counter. "Nothing says I have to study today. We can go do something."_

"_Nathan! You have an English test! You have to study. I can't just let you not study." Her lip curled up, horrified by the idea._

_He shrugged, "Why not? I'm sure I'll do fine." He sat down heavily next to her, his hand reaching for the remote, which she snatched away hastily. "Hales." He groaned._

"_I'm serious Nathan. Why did you have to wait for Sunday? I wanted us to do something fun." She curled towards him, her legs draped across his lap._

"_I can think of something fun we can do." Nathan winked at her, sending a shock of shivers down her neck._

"_Nathan!" She grinned, despite the attempt to keep her voice stern._

"_What? I was just saying." He gave her an innocent look. "Besides, I don't want to study. I want to be with you." He leaned over, his lips pressing against hers, his tongue teasing hers to open. She did, willingly, her breath coming fast as he angled his mouth along hers, his teeth scraping at the plump flesh of her bottom lip. Pulling his shirt, she leaned them back against the length of the couch, her body tight underneath his. His leg came between hers, her hips nestling his. She could feel the heat radiating off him, the power of him above her, and she lost herself in him, in his touch, in his love._

_Her mind shut off, the very power to think gone as she lost herself in sensations, in the joy of being close with him. Being with him always gave her the feeling of endless possibility, of unlimited love and security, and it was a feeling that daunted her, that brought the very heart of them soaring into oblivion. His hand reached underneath her, trying to pull at the clasp of her bra, and her mind snapped back, remembering her previous grievance._

"_Stop!" She pushed at his chest, hurtling him backward._

_He groaned, unhappily trying to pull her back to him. "Hales."_

"_No. Quit distracting me." She shook her head, attempting the clear the lust of her head. "Or rather, I should stop distracting you."_

_He pulled her arm, dragging her back across the couch to rest along the length of him. "You're not distracting me." He smiled, his lips curving against the smooth skin of her cheek. "Well you were, but I was really enjoying it."_

_Haley pushed away from him, despite the protest from both him and within her. "Nathan. I'm serious. I want you to get a good grade on your test tomorrow."_

"_I will. I married my tutor, remember?" He smirked, his eyes twinkling._

"That is not what happened at all!" Nathan laughed from beside her, his chest shaking beneath her head.

Haley propped herself up on one elbow to look down at him. "What are you talking about?

Nathan leaned up, stretching one arm beneath his head, his whole posture completely at ease. "I'm talking about your story. Story being the operative word, because that is not how it happened at all."

"Yes it is!" Haley shrieked. "I think I remember."

Nathan shrugged, "Then clearly you remembered your own version, because that is not how it happened."

She frowned at him, contemplating. "Are you sure, because I distinctly remember you needing to study for a test. That's how it all started."

He sat up then, his leg bent at the knee. "Of course I remember. I thought we went over this before. I remember all kinds of things, and you definitely have your own version created. Maybe it's because the truth is a little less flattering to you, Tutor girl."

"_Hales, I need to study." Nathan's voice protested, his lips barely able to form the words before hers descended again, her tongue lapping against his in a sexy caress, her fingers running trails along his hair. She was pressed against him fully, her soft curves molding to the long, hard length of him. "Hales."_

_She ignored him, her mouth continuing to pull at his, her hips grinding into his, and he felt his breath sucked out in one long swoosh, her hands everywhere all at once. Her mouth bit at his eagerly, her teeth scraping, her tongue plundering, and he found himself unable to deny her. Her hands began to pull at the cotton hem of his t-shirt, her mouth leaving his to fuse kisses along the expanse of his stomach._

_He struggled to reign in his control, to find the words he needed to stop them. "Haley. I'm serious. I have a big test coming up, and I really think I should study."_

_Haley's eyes met his, and her mouth went into the patented Scott smirk, "Screw studying."_

"Nathan!" Haley jabbed him in the side, her laughs free in the secluded park, her face a beautiful shade of pink. She giggled; the very joy of her contagious, as his smile widened and he quickly joined in, his chest moving to laugh quickly.

"I'm telling you. My mind is like a steel trap." He tapped the side of his head.

She giggled again, her cheeks flush with pink. "How is it that you always know what to say?"

He leaned back against the tree, pulling her alongside him, her body nestling in the crook of his shoulder. "Just comes from being with you."

"There you go again." She smiled sweetly at him, bringing her lips to his. He leaned down, closing the distance between them to kiss her sweetly. "Now I do believe I was telling a story before I was interrupted." She gave him a pointed a look and he grinned, kissing her briefly.

_She knew she should stop them, she knew he needed to study, but for some reason the only thing she could focus on was the way his lips were caressing her ear, his tongue flicking lightly along her lobe. She fought for words, her mind searching franticly for what she knew she needed to say, yet nothing came. She could only focus on the emotions he was stirring within her._

_Nathan paused beneath her, his breath hot against the skin of her neck, and she took the opportunity to clear her mind, to speak what she knew lay on the tip of her tongue._

"_Nathan." She spoke his name hesitantly, the tone of it confused. _

"_Mmm, Hales." He murmured against her neck as his hands slipped under her t-shirt to feel the heated skin of her back._

_The afternoon light beat in through the slits of the living room window blinds, the pattern reflected on the stark wall. Haley's eyes focused on the lines, the pattern, as she pushed herself back onto her heels to look at him through lust filled eyes._

"_We need to stop." She pulled at her shirt, righting it from the twist his hands had put it in. Haley pulled a shaky hand through her hair, blowing out a long breath. "We need to help you out. We need to help you study."_

"_Come on. Hales." He attempted to pull her back but she scooted out of arm's reach to sit on the arm of the couch. _

"_No Nathan, I'm serious. You need to study." She pulled at her hair, pushing it out of her face. "What is the test on?"_

_Nathan threw back his head and groaned. "I don't know. I don't want to study."_

"_Nathan!" Haley snapped. "Get your backpack."_

_He lifted his head to glare at her, and she held his glare, returning a stern one. He sighed heavily before reaching behind the couch to grab his backpack, dumping it heavily between them. He crossed his arms over his chest and looked at her expectantly._

_Haley threw him one last look before opening his backpack, pulling out his English book and binder. Rifling through the pages she found the study sheet his English teacher had given him and she sighed. "Did you even think to listen when you're teacher was reviewing? See all these blank spots…" she gestured to the study sheet, "that's where you were supposed to write down what he told you." She sighed again, earning her another glare from him._

"_I'm not five, I understand what a study sheet is." He stared at the living room wall, his jaw set._

"_I know. And I'm sorry, but Nathan, this could have gone a lot faster if you had already done all this. Your test is on poetry and its inferences, and this could take awhile." She tried to send him a smile, which he ignored._

"_You don't have to help me. I'm perfectly capable of doing it on my own." He continued to avoid her gaze, and she knew he was fighting his temper._

_Haley threw on a smile, her words laced with tenderness. "I know you can, but lucky for you, you married your tutor." She moved his backpack, crawling across the space between them to snuggle against his side. Throwing her arm around his shoulder, she leaned her mouth close, whispering in his ear. "I want to help you, even if you don't need it."_

"Oh come on! I did not pout like that." Nathan laughed, poking Haley in the side.

Haley giggled, nodding happily. "I'm sorry honey, but yes you did. You totally got your panties in a bunch about it. I remember it quite well. I thought you were going to start stomping your feet and turning red."

"Well you would know all about my 'panties,' right?" Nathan leaned back against the tree they had been lying under, the sunlight streaming across his face, his expression relaxed and happy. "But I think you have selective memory because I don't remember ever throwing a fit about studying."

"Well you did." Haley leaned up, kissing him fully on the lips, her lips tasting of cherries and him. "Now quit interrupting and let me finish telling the story."

_His eyes met hers then, the iciness melting from his face and he smiled briefly. She kissed him briefly, glad to see the anger leaving his eyes, replaced with love and lust. "I didn't mean to make you mad." _

_Nathan threw his arm around her, pulling her closer into his side. "I know you didn't. And for what it's worth, the reason my study sheet is blank is because I missed that class. Whitey had me in his office. He wanted to review for the game." He ruffled through his backpack, pulling out another sheet. "Here's the study sheet I got from Lucas. He copied his notes for me during his class later. And I figured who better to get notes about poetry from?" He smiled._

_Haley's mouth shot up in a bright smile. "Nathan! Look at you, being resourceful. And you're right, Lucas is the person to go to for poetry. He knows what he's talking about. So you're being tested on Robert Frost and John Keats. Okay, those are two we can handle I think." Her eyes moved over the sheet quickly, her mind ticking away at the best way to get him through this._

"_How long do we have to do this? You know I hate poetry." He slumped further in the couch, pulling her down with him, his legs stretched across the coffee table._

"_I know you do. But I have an idea to make this more enjoyable." She smiled at him._

_Nathan grinned, a mischievous glint in his eye. "We're going to study naked?" He asked hopefully._

_Haley burst out in giggles. "In your dreams." She kissed him solidly before bolting off the couch to put on her shoes. "Get your coat. I'm taking you out."_

"I still think studying naked would have been a better use of our time."

Haley giggled, moving to sit across his lap, her face close to his. "Well it definitely wouldn't have been studying. Or at least not poetry." She gave him a cheeky grin.

He ran his hands up her back, feeling the way her muscles quivered under his touch. His eyes focused on the mole right below her ear, and his finger moved to caress it casually. "That's definitely true. That's why it would have been better."

Haley leaned back against his chest, her eyes watching the sun beginning to set on the horizon, the sky lit with purples and golds. "My idea wasn't entirely horrible, was it?" She turned her eyes to him, and he leaned down to kiss her, his tongue sliding against hers in a sweet caress.

"No it wasn't horrible at all."

"_The park?" Nathan pulled the car over to the side of the road, his hands still on the steering wheel._

_Haley turned in the passenger seat to give him a long look. "Not just any park. Grant Park. It's gorgeous here." She threw open her door, jumping out, his English book still clutched in her hands._

_Nathan followed more reluctantly, taking his time to circle the car to stand beside her. "I know its Grant Park; I'm just not so sure why you decided this is the perfect place to study. I thought for sure you'd make me go to the library."_

_She glanced over at him, shifting the book in her hands. "I just figured if we're going to be studying Frost and Keats, we should go to the place they're talking about." She looked out over the park. "Well not the exact place, but you know what I mean, outside, with nature."_

"_Nature?" He curled up his lip disdainfully._

_  
Haley laughed, "Yes city boy. Nature." She pulled him across the park, moving from tree to tree, her eyes traveling ahead of them._

"_What is it exactly you're looking for?" Nathan trailed behind her, their hands linked together. _

_She stopped, sending him a smile over her shoulder before pulling him again. "The perfect spot."_

"And I found it, didn't I?" She smiled at him, her eyes gesturing to the tree Nathan was leaning against then.

"Yes you did." He pressed his head forward, moving his lips against hers in a whisper of a kiss. "And there I was secretly thinking you just wanted to take me to secluded spot to make out, but no, we had to study." He smirked playfully.

"_Okay so Mr. Temple has written here that half the test will be involving Robert Frost's 'The Road Not Taken' and the other half will be about Keats's, 'To Autumn.'" She put the paper down. "Now, I'm pretty familiar with Frost's poem, seeing as it's so famous, but I don't know much about this particular Keats poem. Do you remember anything significant about it?" Haley looked at Nathan expectantly._

"_Um it's about autumn." He grinned._

"_Really? I never would have guessed." Haley shot him a grin before flipping through is English book, locating the poem rather quickly. "Just give me a few minutes to read it, and then we can start to study."_

_Nathan nodded, his back settling against the large oak tree Haley had picked to sit under. He had to admit the park was beautiful, the trees littering the horizon. He took a deep breath, felt the crisp air settle around them, and he absently wished they had brought another blanket. If he was beginning to get cold, there was no doubt Haley would be shivering in no time. As if on cue, Haley shivered briefly, her chin burrowing beneath the collar of her sweatshirt as she read, her eyes darting along the lines._

_His eyes followed the golden blonde of her hair as it trailed down her back, the waves curling. Her brow was furrowed in concentration as she read over the lines, her nose scrunched in thought and he saw her teeth bit down thoughtfully on the corner of her bottom lip. His palms itched to reach out and caress her, to bring her attention back to him, to forget all about English and poetry, but instead concentrate on him, on them, here together now._

_She looked up then, felt his gaze hot open her face; and she smiled, a brilliant knowing smile. He grinned back, unabashedly, and it amazed him how they could say so much with only looks and touches, the words not needed. _

"_So the Frost poem is pretty straightforward, so let's start with that one. It's about choosing the right path for yourself, instead of relying on the one that is taken by most people. It's about going against the current, following your own destiny instead of the one society dictates. It's about being happy." Haley smiled, moving closer to his side, her own back pressed against the solid trunk of the oak tree. "See this part here, _'Then took the other, as just as fair; and having perhaps the better claim, because it was grassy and wanted wear…' _he's talking about making a choice to live your life for yourself. Or at least that's what I've always thought. What do you think about it?"_

_Her eyes sought his; and Nathan had a hard time concentrating on the words, as his eyes lingered on the movement of her mouth, the way they had moved under his earlier, the way they had pressed delightfully against his own in their heated state. She raised one eyebrow carefully, clearly waiting for his own interpretation to the poem, and he cleared his throat before speaking._

"_I pretty much always thought the same thing. I mean, this is one of the most well known poems, and you always hear it referred to when people are trying to figure out which way to take when they come to a crossroads." He looked down at the poem to quote directly, "_'Two roads diverged in a wood, and I- I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference.'_ He's advocating his own choice to follow what was important to him over what others expected him to do. Right?" He looked up at her nervously._

_Haley smiled grandly, "I think you said that perfectly. And that's one of the things I've always loved about Robert Frost. He doesn't hide his meaning behind prose and syntax, but rather he highlights it, emphasizes it. It makes it a lot easier to understand." She kissed him quickly, before flipping the pages of the book to once again find the Keats poem._

"_Now Keats, he's a little harder to decipher sometimes. It's a good thing we have Lucas's notes too. Poetry is not my thing." She blushed bashfully._

_Nathan tucked her hair behind her ear. "I thought you loved English."_

"_I do. I love reading fabulous stories, classics that take you to another time, but poetry? Poetry I have a much harder time with, so I apologize now for my lack of knowledge."_

_He chuckled, "There is no way I can do worse than I would have by myself. And I want to apologize for earlier at the apartment. I didn't mean to get so moody, I just hate that you think I slack off. I've been trying to do better."_

_Haley's eyes narrowed, "Is that what you think? That I believe you don't try hard enough?" Her voice did nothing to hide her shock._

_He shrugged. "Sometimes. I mean, I know I'll never be as smart as you or Lucas, but I really am trying now." His blue eyes met her concerned brown ones, and he felt the anxiety begin to dissipate._

"_Nathan." She spoke his name softly, running her hand through his hair. "You are smart Nathan. That's probably why I nag you as much as I do, because I know that if you put even one tenth of the focus into school as you did into basketball, you'd have straight A's." She kissed him then, moving her lips close to his to slide them together, their breaths mingling. "And I don't mean to nag, but it's the tutor in me. I just want you to do well."_

"_I know you do. And I appreciate it. It means a lot to me that you have so much faith in me."_

_Haley smiled brilliantly, "It's easy to have faith when you love someone as much as I love you."_

"You are so sappy!" Nathan chortled and Haley blushed.

"Like you don't have your moments! Please! If I had a dollar for every cheesy line you've said to me, then we'd be driving around in a Bentley instead of that old hatchback." Haley smirked as Nathan elbowed her playfully.

"Who's the one who quotes _The Notebook?_" He pointed out.

She laughed, "Who's the one it always works on?"

"You suck." Nathan folded his arms across his chest, and she turned to press her chest against his arms, her fingers scratching lightly at the hair around the nape of his neck. She brought her lips close, her breath warm against his lips. He closed the distance between them quickly, his mouth closing around hers, his lips pulling hers open. His tongue darted forward, lapping against hers, and he heard the moan escape her moments after he felt it.

Haley angled herself in his lap, her legs thrown to one side. Nathan's arms were tight around her waist, pulling her body even with his, no breath of room between them as they lips and tongues dueled for control, for power, for satisfaction. She felt the love sizzle in the air around them and a part of her wondered how they could have ever lost this, how a part of her could have ever thought there may be no hope for the two of them. But feeling this now, feeling him pushing back forcefully to taste more of her, to devour all of her, she knew all those fears were gone, shattered, broken.

They were back. Back to what they had once been, only stronger, more comfortable in their ease together, more aware of each other's thoughts and feelings. They had made it through a rough patch, a time when she wasn't sure if they could ever repair what had been broken, but they had moved out of it, stronger and more in love than before.

His lips moved from hers to take a bite of her neck, his tongue licking lightly at her pulse point, her heart constricting happily.

She found her words; found her voice strained with lust. "You're distracting me."

He smiled against her neck, "That was the point. And if the moan was any indication, you were enjoying the distraction."

She grinned, enjoying the way he kept his mouth open against her neck. "I'm not denying that. I love you Nathan."

Haley could feel his lips curve against her skin, his teeth nipping at the heated skin of her neck. "I love you too Haley."

She pulled away quickly, "Okay, then let me finish the story."

"But Hales…" he trailed off pitifully. "Fine."

"_I hate this poem." Nathan moaned unhappily, his dark hair sticking up against the bark of the tree. "I don't get it at all. What does Lucas's notes say?"_

_Haley looked down at Lucas's familiar scrawl, "He says it's about harvest, about the replenishing of the earth, of yourself, of your life. It's about seeing more in what is around you, finding the beauty in all." She furrowed her brow. "Yeah I don't know how he got that."_

_Nathan looked at Lucas's notes before looking back at the poem. "Maybe he means this part in the beginning, _'And still more, later flowers for the bees, until they think warm days will never cease.'_ I have no idea. That sounds like it's about summer, not autumn." He threw the book to the side. "I hate poetry. I don't want to do this anymore."_

_She sighed, not really all that sad that he wanted to stop studying. "I know I should be trying to convince you otherwise, but I can't bring myself to stop you." She smiled._

_He looked at her startled. "Never thought I'd hear you say that."_

_She shrugged, "Well, if you just study what Lucas came up with, I'm sure you'll get a good grade." She snuggled down into the crook of his shoulder, feeling the way his arm came around her. He pulled her in close to his side, his body slumping down. _

"_It was a good idea to come out here. If we'd stayed in the apartment all day, I'm pretty sure I could have distracted you much easier there."_

"_What's stopping you now?" She smirked up at him, her eyes glinting._

_Nathan raised his eyebrows. "Oh really?" He leaned over her then, his hands running up and down her sides, loving the feel of her under his hands, her soft curves splaying out against the hard, leanness of him. They were such wonderful contradictions. _

_She was short. He was tall. She was thoughtful and caring, he was often brash and rude. She was everything he wasn't, and vice versa. And he truly believed that was why they worked so well. Why they felt that cosmic pull to be together. They were what they needed to be complete, to feel whole, to feel alive._

_For them, opposites truly did attract._

"_What time is it?" She yawned sleepily, her eyes fluttering._

_He glanced at his cell phone, flicking on the light. "3:32." He shoved the phone back in his pocket, his body turning towards hers, his head propped up in his palm. He watched the way her eyes closed heavily, noticing the tell tale signs of sleep. "Are you tired?"_

_She yawned again, "Yeah, I didn't sleep well last night." She shot him a pointed look. "I didn't get much chance."_

_Nathan grinned. "I'm just as tired as you."_

_Haley nodded, "It's so peaceful here. I can't believe we're the only ones here. It's the perfect afternoon." She snuggled into him, her body leaning against his, seeking his warmth. _

_He looked up at the trees, noticing the way the green and gold of the leaves glittered against the still bright sky. The birds whistled high above in the tree and he felt Haley grow heavier on his side, her body slumping. He could hear her breaths, deep and even, and knew at once she had fallen asleep.  
_

_Angling his head, he looked at her face, the easy peaceful way her eyes closed against the cotton of his chest. Her hair splayed across his arm, and his fingers reached to twirl the ends around his knuckles. She murmured something incoherently, her nose nuzzling further into his chest, settling further into him. His chest swelled at the sight of her, the way she slid so effortlessly into sleep, his very presence allowing her the comfort of sleep. He knew it was due to the fact that she trusted him completely that she allowed her defenses a rest in order to take a nap. A peaceful nap in a beautiful park next to the man she loved._

_Nathan closed his eyes briefly. Her scent wafted over him, the sweet scent of cinnamon and vanilla mixing around him. His fingers ran along her back in lazy circles, enjoying the feel of her next to him, the feel of her underneath him, and he too felt his eyes lowering, his body relaxing against hers. And as he drifted peacefully, his arm pulled tightly around her, her body turned into his side, his last full thought was of her._

"I think that was one of the most romantic afternoons we ever had. I can't believe I don't think about it more." Haley smiled up at him, her head resting against his chest, her legs along the length of his from where she sat in his lap.

Nathan smiled. "After you left, I thought about it a lot. I thought about how easy it has always been to be with you. Most of the things I've really wanted, I've had to work for. But being with you, it's always been so natural, so surreal. I think sometimes I took it for granted. Until you weren't there anymore." His voice was quiet, his tone sad.

Haley turned then to face him, her hands pulling at the collar of his sweatshirt. "I've never been as sure of anything as I have to be with you. Usually I second guess everything to death, I run of my decisions time and time again. But I never did that with you, with us. You are what I wanted, always."

His eyes smiled then, the blue of them grow darker around the iris. "It's nice to hear you say that again. I wasn't sure we'd have the chance." He kissed her passionately, his mouth hot and wet against hers.

"We'll always have that chance. We're too important to not have all the chances in the world. We'll never be over. You're it for me, Nathan." Haley smiled again, bringing her lips back to his for a deep kiss, her tongue tracing along his, her mouth open and willing for his.

She clutched at his chest, felt his ring lie across his heart, and her heart yearned to pull it off the chain, replace it where it was meant to lie. She fingered it unconsciously, her finger running in circles around it, and his hand stilled hers, lacing them together over it. She looked up at him, watching the way his lips curved up slightly, his eyes staring into hers.

Leaning forward slightly, he pulled the chain out from underneath his sweatshirt, the muted gold glinting against the cotton. Her eyes lingered on the ring before moving to his to question. He didn't look away, only moved his hands to pull the chain off from around his neck, opening the clasp to slip the ring off.

Taking her hand in his, he placed the ring in her open palm, his hand closing hers around it. His eyes held hers, searching and longing, and she smiled, the meaning dawning on her. He grinned back, his mouth wide, as he felt her grab for his left hand.

She held the ring out, saw the way the gold glinted today in the evening sky, the gold of the sunset reflected in the gold of the ring, and her eyes searched his. "I love you Nathan. Now and forever. I'm sorry we ever lost our way, but from now, until the end, I will be by your side. Always and forever." She kissed him, her lips moving against his silkily, her tongue gently teasing his. She slid the ring along his left ring finger as their mouths continued to meet, their breaths shared.

He pulled back, looking at the way the gold glinted again on his hand, the emptiness its and her absence had created beginning to fill, and he clutched her hand, lacing their fingers together. The gold of her ring sparkled against the gold of his, and they were together. Solid. Real. Love.

"Always and forever." He murmured again, his blue eyes catching hers before pulling her back into another shattering kiss.

Haley sighed, happy to have his mouth against hers again, delighted to see the gold wink at her from his hand. It was real, it was fixed, and they were beginning again, a chance to start fresh together.

Nathan pulled away suddenly, his lips leaving hers. Haley gave him a startled look, her lips pink from his.

"What?" She saw the way he looked around, as if he was searching for something. He felt his pockets, shifting her slightly off his lap to lift up on hip, digging in his jeans pocket. He pulled out their car keys, smiling to himself.

Haley still watched him, confused as to his sudden transition. "Do you want to go?"

He looked at her, slightly confused. "Not yet." He pushed her off his lap, moving her to sit beside him.

Before she could even react, he had turned towards the oak tree once more, raising himself up onto his knees. Holding the key out, he began to dig at the bark behind them, his motions fast and furious.

"What are you doing?" Haley spoke up, startled. She watched as he continued to dig away at the tree, forming a deep line in the trunk.

He didn't answer her, instead kept working, his hand moving the key to dig another line parallel to his first one. She squinted, moving to the side to get a better view, and quickly saw him complete the first part. H.

She smiled as his hand moved to work on the J, the H standing clear against the dark brown of the trunk. She ran a hand along his back, touched by the romantic gesture. He continued to squint in concentration, his hands making fast work of their initials, the gold on his left hand beckoning her gaze.

He pulled back moments later, his eyes lingering on his work.

HJS

NS

Haley's eyes misted, her eyes clouded by a veil of tears. Nathan turned then, saw the brown of her eyes glassy with tears, and he smiled. "I love you Haley. This is just to show anyone else who happens to sit under this tree; that we are forever. Even after we're gone, this tree will hold the reminder of us. Always."

She smiled again, her hands running along his face to grab him close, kiss him solidly, her body tight against his as they knelt in front of one another. He kissed her back with a fever, the ardor of being with her pushing him to the hilt, and he wanted his fill of her.

He pulled her up, his left hand reaching down for her, and the gold glinted, her eyes watching the way the ring circled his finger, the tints of gold representing all they were.

And she felt it grow around them.

Always.


End file.
